 "UP: 76 more Covid-19 deaths, 5,463 new cases; minister among victims")
Uttar Pradesh on Thursday reported 76 COVID-19-related fatalities, taking the death toll due to the disease to 3,217, while 5,463 new cases pushed the infection tally to 2,08,419.
Senior minister Siddharth Nath Singh too tested positive for the virus and is under home quarantine.
There are 52,309 active cases in the state, while a total of 1,52,893 people have been discharged after recovering from the infection, additional chief secretary (information) Awanish Kumar Awasthi told reporters here.
Of the 76 deaths, the maximum 12 were reported from Lucknow, 10 from Kanpur, four each from Gorakhpur, Saharanpur, Shahjahanpur, and Unnao among others, a health bulletin issued here said.
In the state, the maximum 399 deaths have been reported from Kanpur followed by 323 in Lucknow, 156 in Varanasi, 139 in Prayagraj, 131 in Meerut, 125 in Gorkahpur, 110 in Bareilly and 106 in Agra among others, it said.
Among the fresh cases, state capital Lucknow recorded the maximum 792 cases, followed by Allahabad (351), Gorakhpur (232), and Moradabad (146), it said.
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Of the 52,309 active cases, 26,504 are in home isolation.
"In the last 24 hours, 5,463 fresh COVID-19 cases were found," Awasthi said.
He claimed that Uttar Pradesh has become the first state in the country to conduct over 50 lakh COVID-19 tests since the outbreak of the virus. On Wednesday, 1,38,378 tests were conducted in the state.
"Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath has expressed his satisfaction over 50 lakh tests and asked to work on doing two lakh tests per day," he said.
Meanwhile, after testing positive for the virus, Singh requested those who have come in contact with him to get themselves examined.
"After preliminary symptoms of coronavirus, I got myself tested and the report was positive. I am alright but on doctor's advice I have isolated myself in home quarantine," the 56-year-old Cabinet minister said in a tweet in Hindi.
"I request those who came in contact with me over the last few days to get themselves tested," the minister said.